1. Field of the Invention
This invention relates to a developer sheet bearing a color developer reactive with a dye precursor contained in microcapsules of a photo-, thermo- and/or pressure-sensitive recording medium, ad more particularly to a developer sheet particularly suitable for ornamental or decorative use.
2. Description of the Related Art
It has thus far been known in the art to provide recording media consisting of a combination of a sheet which is coated with microcapsules containing a photo-hardening resin, a photo-polymerization initiator and a dye precursor as major constituents, and a sheet which is coated with a developing agent capable of developing a color image by reaction with the encapsulated dye precursor, as described in Japanese Laid-Open Patent Applications 58-88739, 58-88740, 61-42649 and 61-24495.
Since the mechanical strength of the microcapsules is increased upon exposure to light because of the photo-hardening substance, the recording media of this sort have been used mainly on a machine which is arranged to expose a microcapsule-coated surface to light according to picture image information and then to rupture or crush the unhardened microcapsules, forming a picture image by reaction of the developing agent on the developer sheet with the dye precursor released from the ruptured microcapsules.
The developer sheets may be classified into a paper type which carries a developer layer on a substrate paper sheet and a plastic type which carries a developer layer on a transparent plastic film for overhead projectors.
The existing developer sheets are designed only for use as print-out sheets or for use on overhead projectors, giving no consideration to the use of developer sheets for ornamental or decorative purposes.